A fourteen man Dynamos’ team put up dogged resistance on the road against Romford in the ENIHL Southern Cup on Sunday.

Ultimately they fell short as the Raiders used their numerical advantage to sweep their way to a 6-1 victory.

Short on players, the Dynamos would have been looking to keep it tight in the opening frame but it was in that first twenty minutes that the hosts did much of the damage as they raced into a 4-0 lead ahead of the buzzer.

Grant Taylor set them on their way as he converted from Tom Davis’ pass before forward thinking blue liner Andrius Kaminskas rattled the puck home to make it 2-0. AJ Smith was next to beat netminder Andy Moffat as he found the target for Romford’s third before Billy Phillips notched the fourth to give the Raiders a commanding edge.

After the break the Dynamos upped their game for the second period and their increased work rate saw them shut down the home side’s attack with the hosts unable to add to their tally. Andy Moffat faced thirteen more attempts on his net whilst Michael Gray thwarted all of the visitors’ eleven second frame shots.

In the final third of the tie JJ McGrath then fired in to put Romford five to the good but the Dynamos would break their duck soon after when Ryan Ellis put the puck over the line to deny the Raiders a shutout. The hosts would have the final say on the night however when Andrius Kaminskas put away his second of the evening to make it 6-1 and seal the two points for the mini-league table.

So it was a second cup defeat for the Dynamos at the hands of Romford with the Essex side able to ice a much larger squad and reaping the rewards for it. The visitors put up stubborn resistance, and Head Coach Kevin Parrish will have been pleased with their efforts, but ultimately the Raiders were too strong on the night.

Man of the match awards went to Matt Turner of the home side whilst Peter Beerling, who was playing up from the Mustangs, took it for the Dynamos. From here the team must now prepare for another tough challenge as they host the Chelmsford Chieftains at the Silver Blades Ice Rink Gillingham on Sunday from 5.15pm.